Time of Blood
by DaftTimeLordsUnited
Summary: When the Doctor and Martha find themselves transported back to the 1800's they meet a young boy named Larten. Just like the doctor, he's on the run from his past-following his master into the world of blood. But no one can run forever...
1. Prologue

**_This is just the prologue! It's very repetitive-but it's just a one off thing. Please Enjoy? _**

* * *

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

He could hear it-clear in his head.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

Always the same beat-the rhythm of four.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

Constantly in his head-Always in his head.

_Tum, tum, te, tum... _

It was driving him to insanity-thought he wouldn't let it show.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

It was strongest when he was around the watch-The broken Pocket-watch.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

When he around the watch it almost broke him. The beat got louder-the beat of the drums.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

That's what it was. Drums. Always the same beat of four constantly in his head.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

For as long as he could remember, he couldn't think of a time without the drums.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

He'd never told anyone-Not even his closest friend. He didn't dare.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

The beat was too strong-yet he knew no one else could hear it. He had realised that long ago.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

Because he knew he was special. He knew he was unique. He knew he was one of a kind.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

In his head he classed it as the last of his kind.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

He didn't know why...but he felt there was once others out there just like him.

_Tum, tum, te, tum... _

Not anymore. Now he was alone. Alone in the world-the world that was so blind.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

What he didn't know, was that he was blind too. He couldn't see what was right in front of him...

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

He couldn't see that he didn't belong here. He couldn't see he had no life here.

_Tum, tum, te, tum..._

He couldn't see that, whether he liked it or not, the real he was going to be revealed-and when it was-it was going to bring nothing but death, destruction...and the end of the world as everyone knew it...


	2. Meeting

Martha Jones faced the Doctor, arms folded, trying to keep a straight face, and failing. It was just so funny, the way he found everything so exciting. Even...this. A graveyard, of all places. What could there possibly be in a graveyard that could excite an alien? She could still barely believe that he WAS an alien, even after all this time they'd spent travelling together. Sometimes, she would just catch glimpses of him, and for a few moments forget that he was something other than a regular human guy that she... But then it would all come flooding back, the Judoon, the witches, the Daleks, everything. The doctor wasn't paying attention; he was looking around the graveyard as if he was expecting someone. An old lady mourning the death of someone, perhaps? That's pretty much all you can find in graveyards that could be even remotely interesting. "Everything is interesting, Martha," scolded the Doctor, as if he'd read her mind, "ESPECIALLY graveyards, imagine all the stories that lie hidden in this bones…"

"Which we can't find out because they're DEAD."  
"Shhh…" he muttered, "I think I heard something…" Sure enough, one of the family crypts doors creaked, and moved a little. There was an almost imperceptible sound of breathing. "Tell me Martha, do you really think EVERYTHING is dead?"

"Of course they are!" She laughed, and then stopped when she saw the expression on the doctors face "I mean...they are, aren't they?" The doctor raised an eyebrow at her knowingly, causing her to gasp. "They're not gonna all like, jump out of their graves and eat us are they? PLEASE say that they're not?" She moved closer to him and glanced around worryingly.

"Oh No, Martha!" The Doctor grinned "Of course they're not! That's like saying that humans are the only species-Nothings what it seems!" She mumbled something under her breath and scowled, but the Doctor didn't notice. "After all-there's lots out there! Even here on earth! There are werewolves. Ghosts and even..." he paused, and sniffed the air "...Vampires..."

"Vampires?" Martha scoffed. "I've heard it all now. Aliens...I can deal with-but un-dead bloodsucking monsters? You can't fool me this easily."  
"Fool you? Who said anything about fooling?"  
"Oh I know what you're thinking Doctor, silly little human girl, she'll believe anything. I'm not falling for it. It's like the time you told me that that Bubble-shock stuff everyone used to drink contained little bits of an alien." She raised an eyebrow, sceptically, echoing the doctor's earlier gesture, and strode off towards the crypt which the creaking had come from.  
"Why...oh-why do they never listen to me?" the Doctor muttered to the grave of "Herbert Smith the 7th and his dearly missed wife Gloria" before striding off after her.

She stopped in between two crypts, the noise could have come from either of them so, acting on instinct, she moved to the one closest to her. The stone door was jammed tight as she began to pull on it. "Hey, Doctor?" she called back. "Help me get this door open..."

"How d'you expect me to do that?" Martha stopped pulling on the door and turned to face him.

"Can't you use your sonicy screwdrivery thing...?" He shook his head and sighed.

"What d'you think it is? "He frowned "It won't be able to open that thing besides," he added "wrong Crypt!"

"How do you know?" he nodded his head towards the other one, then winked.

"Because that one has its door open!" She scowled and pushed past him across the graveyard.

"Doctor?" Martha called once she was inside the pitch black crypt. "A little light please?"  
"Light? Now where's the fun in that? Don't you love the sensation of walking blindly into new surroundings, without knowing who or what you're going to encounter?" Laughing at Martha's indignant expression, he obligingly switched on his sonic screwdriver, causing a blue light to shine eerily through the crypt, bouncing off the walls, and illuminating the face of a very scared-but trying not to show it-young boy. "Who've we got here then?" The doctor smiled, bending down so that his face was level with the boys. The boy backed away slightly, causing Martha to speak up.

"You're scaring him!" she protested, then stepped towards the boy "its ok, we're not gonna hurt you." She promised, smiling sweetly. "My name's Martha, Martha Jones-and this-"she pointed towards the time-lord "Is the Doctor! What's your name?" The boy shook his head quickly, and then took a deep breath.

"I'm...I'm Larten..." He mumbled "Larten Crepsley..."

"Well then, Larten! " The doctor jumped back to his feet and grinned "What are you doing here?"  
"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you know..." He smirked "It's a bit strange, isn't it? A kid your age, on his own in a graveyard in the middle of the night? Something must have happened!" At this, the boy-Larten- looked like he was seconds away from making a run for it, eyes widening at the suspicious question the doctor had asked. He didn't run though, he stayed rooted to the spot, and defiantly told the two travellers that no, nothing had happened, out of the ordinary, to make him hide in a crypt at the dead of night. However his eyes told a different tale. The doctor could see this clearly, because in some ways this young boy reminded him of himself, before he met Rose, when the horrors of the time war were still fresh in his mind. Before the Doctor or Martha had time to comment on what the strange young boy had said, he spoke again. "Anyway..." he coughed confidently "I think you...you better leave..."

"Leave?" Martha shook her head "We can't just leave you here! Can we, Doctor?" When the Doctor didn't reply she asked again "Doctor?" She sighed as she turned around to see he had gone-but his sonic screwdriver was sat on the coffin in the middle of the Crypt. "DOCTOR!" she called, and within a few seconds the Doctors head popped around the corner of the Crypt door.

"Sorry..." he smiled, walking back inside "Just...checking the area for clues!"

"Clues for what?"  
"Just...clues!"

"Forget your clues!" Larten interrupted "You should go...and take your..." he stopped and stared at the sonic screwdriver "Your...thing with you!"  
"This," the Doctor contradicted, picking up the screwdriver and flipping it in his hand "Is not a thing! It is a sonic Screwdriver and you..." he pointed at the orange haired child "Should not insult it like that!"  
"Sonic...what?" Larten stared at the Doctor, whose plan had gone exactly as he wanted it to. He could see that the boy was extremely troubled by something or other, and therefore knew that if he could only provide a suitable distraction from whatever was clearly bothering him, he might possibly be able to get some answers. And what better distraction for an inquisitive child than a real live piece of alien technology? In fact, the Doctor thought, forget the child bit, what better distraction for an inquisitive human than alien technology?

"Sonic screwdriver!" The Doctor repeated smugly "It's a screwdriver..." He turned the light off, blanketing the Crypt in complete darkness before continuing. "And it's sonic!" Grinning, he turned the light back on, and was greeted by the face of a boy completely in awe.

"It's...it's..." Larten began before shaking his head, realising no matter how amazing this strange object was, he had to get these people out of here "No, you really should go, my Master will be back soon and..." he stopped, knowing he'd said too much.

"Your Master?" Martha echoed "Like, are you a slave or something?" she asked worryingly "You're not a Slave are you? Doctor, he's not a slave is he?"

"Of course he's not a slave!" the Doctor muttered to Martha, before raising his voice and asking Larten the same question Martha did, in a more doctorly fashion. "Who's your master? Who do you work for? Tell me-it could be important!"  
"I...I know what you are!" Larten blurted suddenly. "You're one of those people...the ones he told me about. It all makes sense...your clothes, the way you knew where to find me, that light shining device."

"Sonic Screwdriver!" The Doctor corrected again, "But what people? What did your Master tell you?"

"He...I can't tell you." Larten frowned "You're one of them..."

"Would you tell me, if I told you that you're in danger?"  
"Danger?" Larten echoed, holding his breath.

"Yep!" The Doctor nodded, he glanced over his shoulder as if waiting for something, then continued "Tell me, Larten, was it? Have you ever heard of vampires?" Larten gasped loudly, these people knew more than he thought. He had to get away from them-but he couldn't, he had to wait for Seba to return, he didn't know what to do. Yet before could answer, a voice caused the Doctor and Martha to turn around.

"Why yes, he has..." It spoke "But the question is..." The owner stepped forward, into the light of the sonic screwdriver-he was old; with long black hair and a bright blood red cape that looked slightly purple under the blue light "...What YOU have heard about us creatures of the night?"


End file.
